Friday, April 17, 2015

Maine's "Cellular Telephone Labeling Act"

April 17, 2015On a 7-4 vote, the Maine Legislature's Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology rejected the "Cellular Telephone Labeling Act" (LD 883), a proposal to require cell phone manufacturers to place health warning labels on cell phones. The bill now goes to the full Legislature as a "divided report." Supporters can try to revive the bill on the Senate or House floor.For more information about this hearing on April 16, see the Portland Press Herald story.

April 5, 2015The
Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology of the 127th Maine State
Legislature held a public hearing on the "Cellular Telephone
Labeling Act" (LD 883) on Tuesday, March 31.The Committee has scheduled a work session for Thursday, April 16, 2015 at 10:00 AM.

The bill requires cell phone manufacturers
that include safety notifications in their owner's manuals to ensure
that the phone's packaging includes these safety notifications or a
label indicating where the safety notifications may be found in the
owner's manual.

The bill prohibits retailers from selling phones without
the appropriate labels. It requires manufacturers to provide the safety
notifications to retailers at no cost to the retailers. It prohibits
retailers from selling phones that do not bear the following label warning that the
device emits radiofrequency electromagnetic fields:

Finally, the bill requires
retailers to provide an information bulletin to the purchaser informing
the purchaser of potential health risks associated with cell phone use.
A violation of these provisions is considered a violation of the Maine
Unfair Trade Practices Act.

In March, 2014, a
similar bill sponsored by Rep. Andrea Boland passed both houses of the
Maine Legislature but was killed by cell phone lobbyists who co-opted
the Democratic House leadership to switch their votes when it was
returned to the originating body for enactment -- normally a routine
vote. For more information on Rep. Boland's bill, see my Mar 21, 2014 press release.The current bill is sponsored by Rep. Harlow of Portland. Co-sponsors include Rep. Beavers (South Berwick), Chapman (Brooksville), Chipman (Portland), Dunphy (Embden), and Rykerson (Kittery).